Material resources and well-being --- Evidence from an Ethiopian housing lottery
Link to article:
Authors:
Andersen, Asbjørn G., Andreas Kotsadam, Vincent Somville
Year:
2022
Reference:
83, 102619Summary
Do better material conditions improve well-being and mental health? Or does any positive relationship merely reflect that well-being promotes economic success? We compare winners and losers from a large Ethiopian housing lottery in a preregistered analysis. Winners gain access to better housing, experience a substantial increase in wealth, and report higher levels of overall life satisfaction and lower levels of financial distress. However, we find no average effects of winning on psychological distress. Our results suggest that not all aspects of well-being and mental health are equally sensitive to economic conditions.
Keywords:
Mental health, Life satisfaction, Distress, Wealth, Housing, Ethiopia
Project:
Oppdragsgiver: Norges ForskningsrådOppdragsgivers prosjektnr.: 287766
Frisch prosjekt: 8106 - Field Experiments to Identify the Effects and Scope Conditions of Social Interactions
